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              -  Home 
              -  Attorney's Guide to the Partition of Railroad Retirement Annuities (07-20) 
              -                   RRB Action on Receipt of Decree or Court Order              

## Topics

-  Purpose of this Guide 
-  The Railroad Retirement Act 
-  Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) 
-  Funding of Railroad Retirement Annuities 
-  Railroad Retirement Annuity Components 
-  Statement or Estimate of Railroad Retirement Benefits 
-  Summary of RRB Requirements for a Partition Order 
-  Railroad Retirement Disability Annuities are Subject to Division 
-  RRB Action on Receipt of Decree or Court Order 
-  Termination of Partition 
-  Effect of Ambiguity and Other Provisions 
-  Name and Address Changes 
-  Legal Process for Enforcement of Support Obligations (Garnishment) 
-  Appendix A - Frequently Asked Questions 
-  Appendix B - Sample Award Language 
-  Appendix C - Sample Court Order 
-  PDF Version 
-  Appendix D: Form G-177C (08-07) Divorced Spouse Annuity Requirements 

 

Upon receipt of a court-certified copy of a decree or court order, the RRB will take the following actions:

A. Determine whether the order complies with the RRB's partition regulations (20 CFR § 295). B. Advise the parties or their legal representatives of the determination (20 CFR § 295.4(c)). C. If the employee is currently receiving and annuity, and:
                        - the spouse or former spouse has submitted and executed Agreement of Spouse or Former Spouse and a Direct Deposit sign-up form, the RRB will withhold the court-ordered partition amount from any annuity payments currently being made to the employee and initiate payment to the former spouse.
                        - the spouse or former spouse has not yet submitted both an executed Agreement of Spouse or Former Spouse and a Direct Deposit sign-up form, the RRB will request that he or she do so.  Withholding from the employee and payment to the spouse or former spouse will occur as described in (E) of this section.  	 

D. If the employee is not yet entitled to an annuity, the RRB will file the order in its official records under the employee's social security number. When the employee becomes entitled to an annuity, the RRB will send notice to the spouse or former spouse at the most current address for him or her in the records maintained under the employee's social security number. The spouse or former spouse will be asked to complete the Agreement of Spouse or Former Spouse and/or a Direct Deposit sign-up form, if not in file, and to respond to the RRB within three months of the date of that notice. Withholding from the employee and payment to the spouse or former spouse will occur as described in (E) of this section.

 In those cases where an Agreement of Spouse or Former Spouse has been returned and the employee dies before becoming entitled to an annuity, payment of the partition award may begin in the month the following three conditions are met:  1) the employee has completed 10 years of railroad service (or 5 years of railroad service after December 31, 1995); 2) the former spouse is age 62; and 3) the employee would have been age 62. E.The RRB will withhold the court-ordered partition amount from annuity payments currently being made to the employee and initiate payment to the former spouse as soon as the Agreement of Spouse or Former Spouse and Direct Deposit sign-up form are both returned to the Office of General Counsel of the RRB. The RRB will withhold a partition award from the employee's annuity for three months pending receipt of the Agreement and Direct Deposit sign-up form, or a response from the spouse or former spouse as requested in (D) of this section.  After three months, if these documents or response have not been received in the Office of General Counsel, the RRB no longer has any obligation to withhold the annuity partition, and the withheld amounts are released to the employee. (20 CFR § 295.4(d)). Withholding will not begin again until the signed Agreement and Direct Deposit sign-up form are received in the Office of General Counsel, and no arrearage accrues to the former spouse. F.The RRB will suspend the partition payment of a spouse or former spouse for any month in which the annuity of the employee is not payable for reasons other than the employee's death. No arrearage accrues to the spouse or former spouse for any month in which the annuity of the employee is suspended or reduced under the RRA.

   

**‹** Railroad Retirement Disability Annuities are Subject to Division
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Termination of Partition **›**

   

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								Last updated: 05/15/2017